Wednesday, January 21, 2015

When Children Escape From Their Cribs

When Elliot was a baby, he would continually escape from his crib. In fact, he would try to escape from nearly everything: baby gates, sleep sacks...gravity. He once climbed to the highest point of the couch and leaped into space — only to crash headfirst into the tile floor below. (Is it any wonder the doctors had to do so many back-of-the-leg tests back then?)

We were living in a quirky San Francisco home, which had about as much space as our current apartment but spread over four levels. Elliot would escape from his crib on the fourth floor and climb down the stairs, leaping over any obstacles, to our bedroom on the second level. He was always delighted with himself. We were terrified.

This is something every parent experiences sooner or later: My God, I can't contain this monster.

Fortunately, Alice was nothing like that. She is spirited in her own way, sure, but Alice never once tried to get out of her crib. And she generally seemed to have a better sense of self-preservation. In fact, she pleaded to be put back in her crib long after she graduated to a toddler bed.

I assumed that girls were just a bit more cautious — and wiser — than boys.

That may be true, but now we have Lucy and she is a crib escaper — just like her brother. That means we're going to have to get her a toddler bed. (I suggested putting one of those tent things on top of the crib, but apparently they're dangerous.)